Automated retail supply chain and inventory management system

ABSTRACT

A system and method are disclosed for supplying one or more goods to a physical store location. The goods may be received at a distribution center (DC). At the DC, the goods may be decanted from their shipping containers into one or more sub-totes, which are contained within one or more product totes. The sub-totes may be transferred from the one or more product totes to one or more order totes based on a velocity of movement of the plurality of goods at the physical store location.

PRIORITY CLAIM

The present application claims priority to U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 62/427,652, filed on Nov. 29, 2016, entitled “AUTOMATEDRETAIL SUPPLY CHAIN AND INVENTORY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM,” which applicationis incorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION(S)

This application relates to co-pending U.S. Provisional PatentApplication Ser. No. 62/423,614 entitled “Automated-Service RetailSystem and Method” and having a file date of Nov. 17, 2016, for allsubject matter common to both applications. The disclosure of saidprovisional application is hereby incorporated by reference in itsentirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The exemplary and non-limiting embodiments described herein relategenerally to an automated retail supply chain storage and retrievalsystem, and more particularly to an inventory management system for usein supply chains in accordance with an illustrative embodiment.

BACKGROUND

In a chain of conventional self-service stores, the most cost-efficientmethod of replenishing store inventories, by far, is by the “case”, thatis, to supply stores with the shipping cases of products received fromsupplying manufacturers. The alternative is to replenish by the “each”or “eaches”, i.e. to supply stores with individual product units inless-than-case quantities, but that method is so much more costly thatuniversally the primary unit of replenishment in large-format storeslike supermarkets and hypermarkets is by the cases shipped in palletshipments.

In a conventional distribution model, the retailer receives pallets ofcases at a distribution center (“DC”), the essential role of which is toreplenish the inventories in a network of stores by periodicallyshipping to each store a specific set of cases of products that areneeded (have been “ordered”) by that store. In the vast majority of DCs,those orders are fulfilled using a manual case-picking process in whichpallets of cases are arrayed in aisles and human operators travel fromone product pallet to another to transfer from each the number of casesordered by the store, placing the selected cases on an order pallet tobe shipped to the store. In some DCs, automated case-picking systems areused, the most advanced of which use mobile robots, such as thosedescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,425,173. Whether the order-fulfillmentprocess is manual or automated, however, the only unit of orderingavailable to the stores for almost all products is a case. This meansthat whenever a store needs to replenish its inventory of a givenproduct (represented by a Stock Keeping Unit or “SKU”), it will receiveat a minimum the number of eaches of that SKU that are contained in thestandard shipping case supplied by the manufacturer, regardless of thevelocity of movement that product typically experiences in the store.The term “SKU” is utilized herein to refer to a single product or good(aka, each). However, the present invention is not limited to only itemsthat have SKUs, as would be appreciated by those of skill in the art.SKU is merely utilized herein in association with the selectedillustrative embodiment for purposes of clarity of description.

While operationally efficient, case-level replenishment forces theretailer to carry considerably more inventory in their stores than wouldbe required if the only replenishment consideration were the avoidanceof out-of-stocks. The smallest replenishment quantity needed to preventout-of-stocks depends on the speed and certainty of replenishmentdeliveries from the DC, and can be defined as the Minimum SafeReplenishment Quantity (“MSRQ”) measured in number of average days ofsupply. While the number of eaches in an MSRQ is SKU-specific, thenumber of days of supply used to calculate MSRQs would typically be thesame for all SKUs. For example, if a DC guarantees a deliveryservice-level of one day to a given store, the MSRQ for that store mightonly be four average days of supply, across all SKUs. An SKU that sellsfive units per day on average would therefore have an MSRQ of twentyeaches, but an SKU that sells only one unit per day would have an MSRQof four eaches.

Except for a small number of “high-velocity” products, a typicalshipping case of product might contain three weeks' worth or more ofsales of that SKU. In other words, the store must allocate three to fivetimes the amount of shelf space to that product than the minimum amountthat would be needed purely to avoid out-of-stocks (e.g., the MSRQ foreach product). Thus, if the store could reduce the replenishmentquantity by a factor of three across all SKUs, the retailer could eitherreduce the size of its stores by two-thirds for the same assortment ofproducts, or else increase the number of products offered by a factor ofthree.

SUMMARY

A method of supplying one or more goods to a physical store location isprovided, the method comprising: receiving, at a distribution DC, theone or more goods from one or more suppliers, the distribution center(DC) comprising: a DC storage structure comprising a plurality of rackmodules separated by aisles and having a plurality of storage levels,the DC storage structure storing a plurality of totes comprised of emptytotes, product totes, or combinations thereof; and at least one DCmobile robot places totes into the DC storage structure, removing totesfrom the DC storage structure, and transporting totes throughout thestorage structure; pickers at workstations depositing the one or moregoods into an empty tote or a product tote, wherein when the one or moregoods are placed into the empty tote the empty tote is then designatedas a product tote and the one or more goods are designated as eaches,and when the one or more goods are placed into the product tote the oneor more goods are designated as eaches; one of the at least one DCmobile robot transporting the product tote to the DC storage structureand placing the product tote into the DC storage structure for storage;and one of the at least one DC mobile robot retrieving the product totefrom the DC storage structure and transporting the product tote to ashipping dock for shipment to a physical store, the physical storecomprising: a building having an automated fulfillment section and ashopping section including a checkout section, and a delivery section;and the physical store receiving the product tote at the receivingsection.

In one aspect, the physical store further comprises: a store storagestructure comprising a plurality of rack modules separated by aisles andhaving a plurality of storage levels, the store storage structurestoring a plurality of totes that are empty when empty storage totes,contain eaches when storage totes, contain orders when order totes, orcombinations thereof; and at least one store mobile robot that propelsitself horizontally and vertically throughout the store storagestructure, placing totes into the store storage structure, removingtotes from the store storage structure, and transporting totes.

In another aspect, an automated order fulfillment system at the physicalstore picks one or more fungible goods from the product tote eaches andorganizes the one or more fungible goods into one or more order totesfor delivery to customers in the physical store.

In another aspect, the method further comprises one or more sub-totessized, dimensioned, and configured to fit within the empty tote and/orthe product tote, and wherein a plurality of empty totes and/or producttotes are sized, dimensioned, and configured to fit on a standardpallet.

In another aspect, a standard pallet comprises one or more of a NorthAmerican pallet, a European pallet, an Australian pallet, or an Asianpallet.

In another aspect, the one or more sub-totes comprise one or more of ¼sub-totes, ½ sub-totes, and/or ¾ sub-totes.

In another aspect, the step of the pickers at workstations depositingthe one or more goods into an empty tote or a product tote furthercomprises the one or more goods being placed into the one or moresub-totes.

In another aspect, when the one or more goods are placed into the emptytote the one or more goods are placed within one or more sub-toteswithin the empty tote, and when the one or more goods are placed intothe product tote the one or more goods are placed within one or moresub-totes within the product tote.

In another aspect, eaches contained in a single product tote havedifferent stock keeping units (SKUs).

In another aspect, eaches contained in a single sub-tote have the sameSKUs.

In another aspect, eaches contained in a single product tote havedifferent SKUs.

In another aspect, eaches contained on a single pallet have differentSKUs.

In another aspect, the step of receiving, at the DC, the one or moregoods from one or more suppliers, further comprises de-trashing shipmentcases from suppliers at decanting workstations of the DC.

In another aspect, the receiving, at the DC, the one or more goods fromone or more suppliers further comprises the at least one mobile robottransporting shipping cases from the shipping dock to a decantingworkstation.

In another aspect, the method may further comprise: tracking a numberand location of eaches contained in each of the product totes in realtime according to SKU; and instructing one of the pickers to allocate apredetermined quantity of eaches into the product tote.

In another aspect, the predetermined quantity of eaches is determinedbased on an inventory requirement at an associated automated store.

In another aspect, the inventory requirement is based on an automatedreal-time inventory count, based on SKUs, at the associated automatedstore.

In another aspect, the inventory requirement is based on a human orderfrom the associated automated store.

In another aspect, the inventory requirement is based on a sales historyat the associated automated store.

In another aspect, the pickers are human.

In another aspect, the pickers are mobile robots.

In accordance with another aspect, a method is provided, comprising: aDC storage structure comprising a plurality of rack modules separated byaisles and having a plurality of storage levels, the DC storagestructure storing a plurality of totes comprised of empty totes, producttotes, or combinations thereof; and at least one DC mobile robot placestotes into the DC storage structure, removing totes from the DC storagestructure, and transporting totes throughout the storage structure; theDC receiving, from a physical store, a request for replenishment of adesired quantity of eaches that is less than a quantity conventionallyrequired to fill a pallet of eaches; tasking the at least one DC mobilerobot to retrieve one or more sub-totes from the DC storage structurecontaining the desired quantity of eaches, the at least one DC mobilerobot retrieving the one or more sub-totes and placing them in one ormore product totes for delivery to the physical store.

In accordance with another aspect, the method further comprises the atleast one DC mobile robot transporting the one or more product totes toa shipping dock for pickup and transfer to the physical store.

In accordance with another aspect, eaches contained in a single producttote of the one or more product totes have different stock keeping units(SKUs).

In accordance with another aspect, eaches contained in a single sub-toteof the one or more sub-totes have the same SKUs.

In accordance with another aspect, the method further comprises thephysical store receiving the one or more product totes at a receivingsection.

In accordance with another aspect, the physical store comprises abuilding having a receiving section, an automated fulfillment section, ashopping section including a checkout section, and a delivery section.

In accordance with another aspect, the method further comprises thephysical store receiving the product tote at the receiving section.

In accordance with another aspect, an automated order fulfillment systemat the physical store picks one or more fungible goods from the producttote eaches and organizes the one or more fungible goods into one ormore order totes for delivery to customers in the physical store.

In accordance with another aspect, a plurality of physical stores are innetworked communication with the DC, enabling replenishment of eachesbased on real-time demand from the plurality of physical stores andwherein the plurality of physical stores utilize sub-totes and totes ofa standardized size.

In accordance with another aspect, the method is fully automated withouthuman interaction.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and other characteristics of the present disclosed embodimentswill be more fully understood by reference to the following detaileddescription in conjunction with the attached drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 shows a schematic of an automated distribution center inaccordance with an example embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a flow-chart showing the flow of product through a retailer'ssupply chain under the present disclosed embodiment;

FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B show an automated decanting workstation within thedistribution center;

FIG. 4 shows an automated Sub-tote-picking workstation within thedistribution center;

FIG. 5A and FIG. 5B show details of the I/O interface at thedistribution center, including the portable racks that hold thereplenishment P-Totes for transport to the automated stores; and

FIG. 6A and FIG. 6B show details of a semi-automatic or manual decantingworkstation.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

FIGS. 1-6B illustrate example embodiments of a method and systemaccording to the present invention. Although the present invention willbe described with reference to the example embodiment or embodimentsillustrated in the figures, it should be understood that manyalternative forms can embody the present invention. One of skill in theart will additionally appreciate different ways to alter the parametersof the embodiment(s) disclosed, such as the size, shape, or type ofelements or materials, in a manner still in keeping with the spirit andscope of the present invention.

Compared to a self-service store, the automated retail store as taughtin U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/423,614 entitled“Automated-Service Retail System and Method” filed Nov. 17, 2016,(hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety), enablesdramatic increases in both space and labor efficiencies in theconstruction and the operation of a retail store, due to the replacementof the self-service packaged-goods market with a robotic each-picksystem such as the one taught in “Storage and Retrieval System”. A keyelement of that each-pick system is the “Tote/Sub-tote” containmentarchitecture in which the primary storage container (“tote”) can besubdivided into multiple compartments that each contain a differentproduct through the use of a secondary container (“sub-tote”). The keyreason for this architecture, in preference to the widely usedalternative method of divider partitions, is that the totes andsub-totes are designed to be manipulated by robots, so that eaches canbe transferred between totes simply by transferring the sub-totescontaining said eaches.

This capability also makes possible a completely automated method ofreplenishing a network of retail stores, especially a network ofautomated retail stores, that is a significant improvement over theconventional method of replenishing stores with the shipping cases ofproducts received from the manufacturers.

Because inventory is relatively high in traditional storage facilitiesbased on case level inventory storage and other inefficiencies, thereplenishment times or frequencies are long, whereas with the presentembodiment inventory may be smaller and replenished more frequently andwith more granularities, such that inventory accuracy is improved withreduced inventory levels as will be described herein. The presentexample embodiment reduces inventory and associated storage spacerequirements by leveraging a tote/sub-tote containment architecture ofthe automated each-picking system used in automated stores to change theprocess of fulfilling store-replenishment orders at the DC. Inaccordance with an example embodiment of the present invention, the DCis an automated DC. In the method and system of the present invention,cases of product arriving on pallets from one or more suppliers orsupplying manufacturers are first opened and the contained eaches aretransferred to sub-totes at one or more decanting workstations. Thisprocess is called “decanting” and is preferably performed as soon ascases are received at the DC. While not essential to the disclosedembodiment, it may be advantageous to automate this decanting process sothat robots perform the transfer of goods from the cases to thesub-totes rather than humans. As would be appreciated by one skilled inthe art, the present invention is configured to perform automated,semi-automated, or human decanting.

Upon completion of the decanting process, the sub-totes filled duringthe decanting process are loaded into “product totes”. Since multiplecases of the same goods or SKUs will be typically be decantedconsecutively (having arrived on the same pallet), these product toteswill typically be single product or single SKU totes. That is, all ofthe eaches in the tote will be the same SKU, though they will typicallybe distributed over multiple sub-totes within the tote.

A feature of the example embodiment is that the eaches of a given SKUcan be decanted into multiple sizes of sub-totes, such that they are notlimited to a single size sub-tote. The replenishment quantity for eachSKU can therefore vary by store based on a calculated MSRQ for that SKUin each store. A further feature of the example embodiment is that thesub-totes contain some number of eaches less than an amount that comesshipped in a case, and including down to a single each per sub-tote.

In accordance with an example embodiment of the present invention, oncea tote has been filled to capacity with product, it is then transferredby mobile robots from the decanting workstation and placed into a DCstorage structure where the inventory remains available to fillreplenishment orders from remote stores. The order-fulfillment processfor those orders is nearly identical to the each-picking processperformed at the store to fulfill customer orders, as discussed in U.S.Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/423,614 incorporated herein.In particular, mobile robots bring product totes (“P-totes”), from thestorage structure, and order totes (“O-totes”) to a workstation whereeaches are transferred from the P-totes to O-totes. The difference isthat in this example embodiment the transfer is performed by a mobilerobot handling sub-totes containing the eaches instead of human orrobotic pickers handling eaches directly. As would be appreciated by oneskilled in the art, this process can similarly be performed by humanpickers without departing from the scope of the present invention.

The fulfilled O-totes, each typically containing multiple SKUs containedin multiple single SKU sub-totes, are shipped from the DC to a networkof automated stores supported by the DC. At each store, the deliveredO-totes are received as P-totes and inducted directly into the automatedeach-pick system operating within the store, where they are held instorage ready to allocate eaches to fill customer orders as discussed inU.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 62/423,614 incorporatedherein.

The automated retail supply chain of the present example embodimentincludes an automated DC and a network of automated retail stores whichare supplied with replenishment inventory from the DC. FIG. 1 shows inschematic form an automated DC, the details of which are described ingreater detail below.

FIG. 2 shows the flow of product through the automated retail supplychain according to the example embodiment. The product flow starts withthe arrival at the automated DC of pallets containing cases shipped byone or more suppliers. Typically, the pallets are single product orsingle SKU pallets, i.e. all cases of product are the same SKU. As wouldbe appreciated by one skilled in the art, some pallets can be “rainbow”pallets comprising multiple single-SKU layers, but this minor complexityin the process is ignored for purposes of this disclosure. Upon arrival,operators must validate that the SKU is known, i.e. the identity andother attributes of the product have been captured previously in thesystem, and that the actual product received are consistent with thoseregistered SKU attributes. This step is substantially similar oridentical to what happens in a manual or automated case-picking DCsupporting self-service stores, but after SKU validation the currentdisclosed embodiment departs from such stores. The second step in theflow is to send the received cases immediately to a decantingworkstation, where they are transferred into sub-totes, which arethemselves contained within totes.

The flowchart illustrates where a truck or other suitable transport mayarrive at a distribution center, for example, with eaches of goods incases on pallets. The pallets may be scanned to identify caseinformation. A decision is made as to what type of decanting workstationthe pallet is to be directed and the pallet is directed to theappropriate decanting workstation. For example, the decantingworkstation can be one of a manual, automatic, or semi-automaticdecanting workstation. A first robot transfers case(s) from the palletto a box opener where the box is automatically opened/cut and the firstrobot disposes of the top of the case. A second robot selects thecorrect corresponding size sub-tote and places the sub-tote in a tote(e.g., a product tote). The second robot then place eaches from the opencase into the sub-tote and when the tote is full of filled sub-totes amobile robot stores the completed (or partially completed) tote in thestorage rack system. The selection of sub-tote size(s) and/or mix ofsizes can be a function of the product velocity requirements for a givenstore to be supplied. For example, mixes of sub-tote sizes may beprovided as a function of different stores to be supplied based onproduct velocity requirements of those stores. Each of these steps isrepresented in the flow of FIG. 2 as shown above the receiving line.

When an order is received from a given store for goods or creatingdemand for goods, the order fulfillment process depicted in FIG. 2 isinitiated. The order fulfillment beings with a mobile robot beingdispatched to transport an empty (or partially empty) order tote to thepicking workstation. Other mobile robots may then (or concurrently orotherwise) bring product totes with the sub-totes to the pickingworkstation where a picking robot transfers entire sub-totes to theorder tote(s) to fulfill the order. As would be appreciated by oneskilled in the art, the sub-totes may be mixed based on the desiredamount of inventory required for a given store. In accordance with anexample embodiment of the repent invention, a decision is provided withrespect to when the order is needed and/or when the order tote ships,whether the order tote is to be directed to a portable rack if the ordertote is needed immediately, or if the order tote is to be directed toshort/long term storage if the order tote is needed in the future. Whena given portable rack is full or at the appropriate level to meet one ormore order(s), it may be released to a given truck or transport fortransportation to a networked store. In accordance with an exampleembodiment of the repent invention, the order totes or racks may bedirected to storage or the truck or transport based on a determinationas to whether a truck or transport is currently available. The flowchartis illustrative of a potential sequence as described herein and withinthe chart where alternative combinations may be provided. Here,scheduling and dispatching decisions of product totes, order totes andotherwise may be made based on order and sub tote size and the timing ofan order receipt and when the order needs to be fulfilled and optimized.

FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B show detailed representations of the decantingworkstation. As shown in FIG. 3A, a mobile pallet robot transfers apallet with cases of goods to a decanting workstation. When exiting thetruck, bar code scanners, radio frequency identification (RFID) readersor other identification technology is used to identify the cases andtheir contained eaches of goods. The destination decanting workstationmay be selected based on the cases and/or eaches the decantingworkstation is best configured to handle, as discussed with respect toFIG. 2.

In accordance with an example embodiment of the present invention, afirst articulated arm robot uses a camera mounted on its distal link toidentify the position of cases situated on the pallet. The first robotadjusts its variable width gripper to the size of the case previouslyidentified, and uses its camera to grip and lift a case from the palletand place it onto a first conveyor.

The case is conveyed into a box cutter that uses blades on a rotatinghead to cut along the bottom perimeter of the case. The box cutter usesthe identification of the case, along with a camera to guide therotating head around the perimeter of the case. Alternatively, the boxcutter may use stationary blades that cut the bottom of the box as it isconveyed in two orthogonal directions through the box cutter.

Once the case is cut along its bottom perimeter, it is conveyed onto asecond orthogonal conveyor where the top and sides of the case arelifted upward and off by the first articulated arm robot. The firstrobot disposes the top and sides of the case onto a third cardboardconveyor shown underneath the second conveyor. Thereafter, the cardboardis transported on a third conveyor to a location where it is collectedto be recycled.

A second articulated arm robot uses a variable width end-effector toload a sub-tote, from stacks of variable sized sub-totes, and places theselected sub-tote into a tote. The size of the sub-tote selectedcorresponds to the identification of the eaches to be transferred andthe desired quantity of eaches to be stored within a sub-tote. Forexample, the quantity of eaches placed in a sub-tote is calculated basedon the inventory rules and velocity of the particular eaches at theretail stores served by the automated DC. Sub-totes of varying size andconfiguration may be placed within a tote to maximize storage densityand decanting efficiency. The identification mark (e.g. alphanumeric orbar code) is read by the camera mounted on the second robot and stored.

Once the sub-tote is placed into the tote, the second robot adjusts itsvariable pitch vacuum cup gripper to the eaches to be picked. The secondrobot uses a camera mounted on its distal link to position the grip andtransfer the eaches from the opened case into the sub-tote. As would beappreciated by one skilled in the art, each picking grippers other thanvacuum may be alternatively used by the second robot (e.g. mechanical,conformal, etc.). The second robot may also be configured toautomatically change gripper types based on the eaches to betransferred.

After all eaches are transferred from the open case, the second conveyortransports the bottom of the case off of its end, and down onto thethird cardboard transporting conveyor.

A key feature of the example embodiment of the present invention is theability to load the eaches of a given SKU into sub-totes of differentsizes at the decanting workstation(s), which allows the replenishmentquantity of each SKU to vary by store. In accordance with an exampleembodiment of the present invention, a standard replenishment quantity(“SRQ”) can be calculated for each SKU for each store, based on an MSRQfor that SKU/store. As an example, if a ⅛-sub-tote can hold four eachesof a given SKU (“XYZ”), a ¼ sub-tote can hold eight eaches of that SKU,and a ½ sub-tote can hold sixteen eaches of that SKU. Furthermore, inthis example, the MSRQ for all stores supported by a given DC is fiveaverage days of supply across all SKUs. In this example, then, the SRQfor SKU XYZ will be a ¼ sub-tote containing four eaches for all storesthat sell no more than 5.6 XYZ eaches per week (4/( 5/7)=5.6). For allstores that sell between 5.7 and 11.2 eaches per average week, the SRQwould be a ¼ sub-totes containing eight eaches, and stores that sellbetween 11.3 and 22.4 XYZ eaches per average week would use an SRQ of ½sub-totes when ordering SKU XYZ from the DC. Note that the SRQ can alsobe a combination of multiple sub-totes. For example, if a store sellsbetween 22.5 and 28.0 eaches per average week of SKU XYZ, the SRQ wouldbe a combination of ½ sub-tote containing sixteen eaches plus a ¼sub-tote containing four eaches.

In accordance with an example embodiment of the present invention, thedistribution of sub-tote sizes into which a total number of eaches of agiven SKU are loaded at the decanting workstation should generally alignwith the distribution of sub-tote sizes produced by summing all of theSRQs for that SKU across all stores supported by the DC. For example, ifthere are one-hundred stores supported by a DC, and a summation of allof the sub-tote sizes in the SRQs for those stores for SKU XYZ yieldsforty ¼-sub-totes, sixty ¼-sub-totes, and ten ½-sub-totes, when cases ofSKU XYZ are being decanted, then, 36% of the sub-totes into which theeaches are loaded should be ⅛-sub-totes (40/110=0.36), 55% should be¼-sub-totes (60/110=0.55), and 9% should be ½-sub-totes (10/110=0.09).

The next step in the material flow according to the illustrativeembodiment is to place totes loaded with filled sub-totes into thestorage structure, and this step is performed by one or more mobilerobots. In particular, once a tote is filled with sub-totes containingeaches, the filled tote is retrieved and placed in the storage structureor rack by a mobile robot as described in U.S. patent application Ser.No. 15/171,802 having a filing date of Jun. 2, 2016 and entitled“Storage and Retrieval System” hereby incorporated by reference hereinin its entirety. These Totes may be the product totes used in theorder-fulfillment process.

The next step in the material flow is the order-fulfillment process inwhich replenishment sub-totes are transferred from product totes toorder totes, and this process is also performed entirely robotically.

The mobile robots deliver the totes (the product totes) containingsub-totes containing eaches to a picking workstation as shown in FIG. 4.mobile robots also deliver empty totes (the order totes) to the pickingworkstation. A third articulated arm robot is used to transfer orderedsub-totes containing eaches to the empty order tote. Once an order totehas been filled with sub-totes containing eaches, a mobile robot caneither store the tote in the storage structure or transport it directlyto a temporarily affixed portable storage rack, shown in FIGS. 5A and5B.

The next step in the material flow according to the present disclosedembodiment is to ship the filled replenishment totes from the DC to thestores.

FIG. 5A shows a portable rack temporarily affixed to the storagestructure, a portable storage rack being transported to a truck, and aportable storage rack located within a truck destined for a retailstore. A mobile robot is shown transferring a loaded tote to theportable rack temporarily affixed to the storage rack.

The portable storage racks are transported using a mobile rack robotconfigured to move the portable storage racks. In particular, the mobilerack robot positions itself underneath the portable storage rack, liftsthe portable storage rack slightly, and uses computer navigation to movethe portable storage rack to a destination. The mobile rack robot iscapable of entering the space underneath the portable storage rackeither between its support legs at its narrow end, or between itssupport legs along its length. The mobile rack robot may alternativelybe controlled by a human operator.

The portable storage rack may alternatively be manually transported onwheels attached to it, or using a human-guided wheeled lift.

The open side of the portable storage rack where mobile robots are ableto load totes that have latches that secure totes from sliding out oftheir storage position when not affixed to the storage structure.Moreover, the top of the trailer may have beams along the length of thetrailer which help guide the portable storage racks into the trailer andprevent them from tipping during transport.

FIG. 5B shows the rail structure that the mobile robots travel on whenplacing or picking totes from the portable storage racks. Registrationfeatures such as registration pins or kinematic couplings may bepositioned at the bottom of the rail structure to correctly position theportable storage rack to the rail structure and storage structure.

The rail structure and storage structure at the retail store contain thesame registration features to permit the portable storage rack to bequickly and accurately aligned with it, and totes transferred into thestorage structure. After the incoming full totes have been transferredin the store's storage structure, empty totes with empty sub-totes canbe transferred onto the portable storage rack for transport back to theautomated DC.

In the scenario where ample space is not available to transport thetotes and sub-totes back to the automated DC on the portable storagerack, the store may nest the sub-totes and totes using an automatedpicking workstation normally used for picking eaches or transferringsub-totes between totes to increase storage density, i.e. defragmentingthe stored sub-totes. The nested totes and sub-totes may be placed onthe truck for delivery back to the automated DC.

Once at the retail the store, the portable storage rack is removed fromthe truck and affixed to the storage structure at the store. At thestore, mobile robots transfer the totes with sub-totes containing eachesinto the storage structure of the automated each picking systemoperating within the store.

The remaining steps in the product flow according to the disclosedembodiment involve the fulfillment of customer orders at each-pickingworkstations, and the transfer of completed orders to customers, asdescribed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/171,802 having a filingdate of Jun. 2, 2016 and entitled “Storage and Retrieval System” whichis hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.

While the decanting workstation, picking workstation, storage rack andportable rack are all illustrated and described as singular forsimplicity, it is expected an automated distribution center containsmultiples of each that interact.

FIGS. 6A and 6B show a manual decanting workstation. Essentiallyeverywhere the articulated robots are provided, humans may be providedalone or in combination, and the pallet and rack mobile robots could bereplaced with “pallet jacks” pulled by humans. The robot least easilyreplaced by a human may be the mobile robot due to speed and volumeconstraints among others.

As utilized herein, the terms “robot” and “bot” are utilizedinterchangeably herein in accordance with their conventional meanings,specifically a useful machine or device, namely, a programmable,multifunctional device capable of moving material, parts, tools, orspecialized devices through various programmed motions for theperformance of a variety of tasks, allocations, designations, or thelike; and/or the machine or device being capable of carrying out asimple or complex series of actions; and/or the machine or device beingcapable of performing tasks that may or may not otherwise be work of aperson; and/or the machine or device being a programmable mechanicaldevice capable of performing tasks and interacting with its environment,without the aid of human interaction; and the machine or device beingcapable of operating automatically or being controlled by a computer.

Numerous modifications and alternative embodiments of the presentinvention will be apparent to those skilled in the art in view of theforegoing description. Accordingly, this description is to be construedas illustrative only and is for the purpose of teaching those skilled inthe art the best mode for carrying out the present invention. Details ofthe structure may vary substantially without departing from the spiritof the present invention, and exclusive use of all modifications isreserved. Within this specification embodiments have been described in away which enables a clear and concise specification to be written, butit is intended and will be appreciated that embodiments may be variouslycombined or separated without parting from the invention. It is intendedthat the present invention be limited only to the extent required by theapplicable rules of law.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of supplying goods to a physical store location, the method comprising: receiving, at a distribution center (DC), a plurality of goods; transferring one or more goods of the plurality of goods received at the DC into one or more sub-totes configured to fit within a tote, wherein a quantity of the one or more goods transferred into the one or more sub-totes is dictated by a velocity of movement of the one or more goods at the physical store location; and making the one or more sub-totes available for shipment within a tote from the DC to the physical store location.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of transferring the one or more goods of the plurality of goods into one or more sub-totes is performed by a robot.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of transferring the one or more goods of the plurality of goods into one or more sub-totes is performed manually.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of transferring the one or more goods of the plurality of goods into one or more sub-totes comprises the step of selecting a size of the one or more sub-totes based on the velocity of movement of the one or more goods at the physical store location.
 5. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of tracking an identifier for the one or more goods transferred into the one or more sub-totes.
 6. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of transferring the one or more sub-totes into one or more product totes, and storing the product tote.
 7. The method of claim 6, further comprising the step of retrieving the one or more product totes from storage, and transferring the one or more sub-totes from the one or more product totes to one or more order totes.
 8. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of transferring the one or more goods of the plurality of goods into one or more sub-totes comprises the step of transferring a plurality of different goods into a plurality of sub-totes in one order tote, the plurality of different goods selected based on inventory needs of the physical store location.
 9. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of tracking, in real time at the DC, the velocity of movement of the one or more goods in the physical store location.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the velocity of movement which dictates the quantity of the one or more goods transferred into the one or more sub-totes comprises the rate at which the one or more goods are being sold at the physical store location.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein the velocity of movement which dictates the quantity of the one or more goods transferred into the one or more sub-totes comprises the stock level of the one or more goods at a given instant in time at the physical store location.
 12. A method of supplying goods to a physical store location, the method comprising: receiving, at a distribution center (DC), a plurality of goods; transferring the plurality of goods into a plurality of sub-totes in, the plurality of sub-totes being different sizes; transferring one or more sub-totes of the plurality of sub-totes into one or more order totes, wherein selection of one or more sizes of the one or more sub-totes is dictated by a velocity of movement of the one or more goods at the physical store location; and making the one or more order totes available for shipment from the DC to the physical store location.
 13. The method of claim 12, further comprising the step of transferring the plurality of goods to a decanting station upon receipt and prior to the step of transferring the plurality of goods into a plurality of sub-totes in a product tote.
 14. The method of claim 13, wherein transferring the plurality of goods to the decanting station is performed by a mobile robot.
 15. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of transferring the plurality of goods into the plurality of sub-totes is performed at a decanting station by an automated robot.
 16. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of transferring the plurality of goods into the plurality of sub-totes is performed manually at a decanting station.
 17. The method of claim 12, wherein the plurality of different goods contained in the plurality of sub-totes have the same stock keeping units (SKUs).
 18. The method of claim 17, further comprising the step of tracking SKUs for the one or more goods contained in the one or more sub-totes.
 19. The method of claim 18, wherein placing goods with the same SKU in a sub-tote, and tracking that SKU allows tracking of inventory expiration dates at the physical store location.
 20. The method of claim 12, further comprising the steps of transferring the one or more sub-totes into a product tote and storing the product tote in a storage location after the step of transferring the one or more sub-totes into the product tote, and before the step of transferring one or more sub-totes into one or more order totes.
 21. The method of claim 20, wherein the step of storing a product tote is performed by mobile robot.
 22. The method of claim 20, further comprising the step of transferring the product tote from the storage location to a workstation, the step of transferring the one or more sub-totes from the product tote into the one or more order totes being performed at the workstation.
 23. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of transferring the one or more sub-totes into the one or more order totes is performed by a robot.
 24. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of transferring the one or more sub-totes into the one or more order totes is performed manually.
 25. The method of claim 12, wherein the step of making the one or more order totes available for shipment comprises the step of transferring the one or more order totes including the one or more sub-totes from a workstation to a shipping area by a mobile robot.
 26. A method of supplying goods to a physical store location, the method comprising: storing, at a storage location within a distribution center (DC), a plurality of goods in one or more sub-totes in one or more product totes; transferring, at a workstation in the DC, the one or more sub-totes from the one or more product totes into one or more order totes, wherein selection of the one or more sub-totes into the one or more order totes is dictated by a velocity of movement of the plurality of goods at the physical store location; and making the one or more order totes available for shipment from the DC to the physical store location.
 27. The method of claim 26, further comprising the steps of tracking a quantity and location of the plurality of goods stored in each of the product totes in real time according to SKU.
 28. The method of claim 26, wherein the velocity of movement which dictates a quantity of the one or more goods transferred into the one or more sub-totes comprises the rate at which the one or more goods are being sold at the physical store location.
 29. The method of claim 26, wherein the velocity of movement which dictates a quantity of the one or more goods transferred into the one or more sub-totes comprises the stock level of the one or more goods at a given instant in time at the physical store location.
 30. The method of claim 26, further comprising the step transferring the one or more product totes from the storage location to the workstation by a mobile robot.
 31. The method of claim 26, wherein the one or more product totes comprise a first group of one or more product totes, the method further comprising the step of transferring the sub-totes from the first group of one or more product totes to a second group of one or more product totes to improve product tote storage efficiency.
 32. A method of supplying goods to a physical store location, the method comprising: storing, in storage locations at a distribution center (DC), a plurality of goods in a plurality of sub-totes in one or more product totes, the plurality of sub-totes comprising sub-totes of different sizes; transferring the one or more product totes from the storage locations to a workstation by a mobile robot; transferring one or more order totes to the workstation by a mobile robot; transferring at least one sub-tote of the one or more sub-totes in the one or more product totes into the one or more order totes, wherein a size of the at least one sub-tote transferred into the one or more order totes is based on a velocity of movement of the goods in the at least one sub-tote at the physical store location; and making the one or more order totes available for shipment from the DC to the physical store location.
 33. A method of supplying goods to a physical store location, the method comprising: receiving, at a distribution center (DC), a plurality of goods; transferring a plurality of different goods of the plurality of goods received at the DC into a plurality of different sub-totes in one or more order totes, wherein types of goods in the plurality of different goods, and sizes of the plurality of different sub-totes, are selected based on a velocity of movement of the plurality of different goods at the physical store location; and making the one or more order totes available for shipment from the DC to the physical store location.
 34. The method of claim 33, wherein the step of transferring a plurality of different goods into a plurality of different sub-totes in one or more order totes comprises the step of transferring a plurality of different sub-totes into a single order tote.
 35. The method of claim 34, wherein the plurality of different goods in the plurality of different sub-totes in the single order tote have different stock keeping units.
 36. The method of claim 34, wherein goods contained in a single sub-tote have the same stock keeping units.
 37. A method of supplying goods to a physical store location, the method comprising: transferring, at a workstation in the DC, a plurality of sub-totes including one or more goods into a plurality of order totes, wherein selection of the plurality of sub-totes into the plurality of order totes is dictated by a velocity of movement of the plurality of goods at the physical store location; transferring the plurality of order totes to storage locations on a portable rack; making the portable rack comprising a plurality of order totes available for shipment from the DC to the physical store location.
 38. The method of claim 37, wherein the step of transferring the plurality of order totes to storage locations on a portable rack is performed by an automated robot.
 39. The method of claim 37, wherein the step of transferring the plurality of order totes to storage locations on a portable rack is performed manually.
 40. The method of claim 37, wherein the step of making the portable rack available for shipment comprises the step of transferring the portable rack to a shipment area by a mobile robot. 